Israeli President Isaac Herzog will depart this Thursday for a state visit to Greece at the invitation of the President of the Hellenic Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.
During the visit, President Herzog will visit Athens and hold diplomatic meetings with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, other senior officials, and members of the Greek Jewish community. The following week, on Wednesday 2 March 2022, President Herzog will visit Cyprus and meet President Nicos Anastasiades.
The President will begin his state visit in Greece by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, after which he will be received at the Presidential Mansion with a state ceremony and will meet President Katerina Sakellaropoulou. President Herzog will then conduct a meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, after which he will participate in a state lunch hosted by President Sakellaropoulou. Later in the day, the President will meet the Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament, Konstantinos Tasoulas, and Greek Opposition Leader and former prime minister Alexis Tsipras. The President will conclude his visit with a meeting with representatives of the Greek Jewish community before making his way back to Israel.
In Cyprus, President Isaac Herzog will be received with a state welcoming ceremony at which both nations’ anthems will be played, after which he will hold a private meeting with President Nicos Anastasiades and then an expanded bilateral meeting with the participation of both delegations, during which both presidents will make statements. President Herzog will also be hosted at a state lunch at the invitation of the President of Cyprus.
President Isaac Herzog, ahead of the visits: "I thank my friends President Katerina Sakellaropoulou of Greece and President Nicos Anastasiades of Cyprus for the warm invitations. In my meetings in both countries, I shall discuss with the leadership and senior government officials steps to broaden and deepen the rich collaboration between our nations. In particular, we will discuss possibilities for regional collaboration in the Mediterranean Basin in the fight against the climate crisis.
"Israel, Greece, and Cyprus are partners in an alliance of stability in the Mediterranean. These state visits are expressions of the profound friendship between our peoples and of our strategic partnership, reflected in the ongoing discussions that I have had from the first day of my Presidency with Greek President Sakellaropoulou, Prime Minister Mitsotakis, whom I recently hosted for a friendly discussion during his visit in Israel, President Anastasiades of Cyprus, and their teams."